Jemima Sumgong: Four-year doping ban for Olympic marathon champion ~ Sportty

Jemima Sumgong: Four-year doping ban for Olympic marathon champion

Olympic marathon winner Jemima Sumgong has been banned for four years after her claim she was taking EPO for an ectopic pregnancy was rejected.

Sumgong told a Kenyan law court she was given the banned substance in hospital, but her paperwork was deemed to have been provided by "an imposter" and her claims labelled as "not authentic".
She also said her husband did not know about the pregnancy because of the "taboo" surrounding the condition.

Sumgong was first suspended in April.

EPO, or erythropoietin, is used commonly to boost the production of red blood cells and encourage more oxygen flow in the body.

The hearing - brought to Kenya's Sports Disputes Tribunal by the country's anti-doping agency (Adak) - ruled that 32-year-old Sumgong owned up to her "unfortunate offence and unintended mistake".

However, the chief executive of Adak told BBC Sport that Sumgong - who also tested positive for a banned substance in 2012 - was "not cooperative and did not give any information".